Patsy Steadman of Force Club Avon and Somerset Police was a finalist in the 2024 GTO of the Year Award®. Here she tells us why she loves what she does, and why members’ health and wellbeing is the priority.
Could you tell us about the Force Club Avon and Somerset Police?
Its main activity is providing health and wellbeing to the 5,000 members of the Club which include serving police officers and staff as well as retired officers. It has a very mixed profile and most of the members have very challenging jobs with long hours and stress.
It’s important to us to offer something for them to be able to destress and something that isn’t going to cost them a fortune. That’s why it’s subsidised. They pay their £2 membership each month. The club has been going for years and in that time, we’ve been able to do lots of negotiations and have built up relationships with companies to get good deals.
Patsy’s group at a glance…
Group name: Force Club Avon and Somerset Police
No. of members: 5,000
Time organising: 30 years
Based: Portishead, Somerset
What are the most popular destinations for your group?
London is one of most popular places at the moment including Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Abba Voyage. Christmas markets both in the UK and Europe are always popular along with sporting events such as rugby in Rome, the F1 racing trips plus long weekends to New York. We do also join up with other forces to make trips more viable which works very well.
What have you got coming up?
This year we have got Mamma Mia The Party which is going to be great. Next year we have a group going to see the Northern Lights in Finland and a trip to Istanbul. We’re also looking at Cirque du Soleil at the Royal Albert Hall.
It isn’t just trips you offer though, tell us more?
The club also has 20 sporting sections including women’s football, netball and fishing. We also own four holiday properties for members to use and we offer hundreds of discounts and money saving ideas throughout the year. We do so much more including offering discounted tickets to places like SS Great Britain and Noah’s Ark and we even put on our own Christmas event each year, setting up a grotto and winter wonderland at HQ!
How much of your spare time do you spend on organising trips?
Quite a lot! I often end up on my iPad in bed at night looking at the trips – especially when organising a ski trip because there’s a lot involved, particularly single rooms which can be challenging. You have to do so much research, looking into all the details like how far the hotel is from where you’re staying, flight times, transfer times, how many skiers in the group of different levels etc.
It takes hours but if you get it right, it pays off. I’ve got one guy who came on a trip with me with his partner all those years ago and he still goes to the same place now with his friends and family.
What do you love about what you do?
I enjoy it so much. It’s about the team effort. I work with Tony and Pauline who are both fantastic – we have a really good team and I couldn’t do it without them. Every day is different and it’s seeing the difference you make to people. We get some lovely feedback, and it makes all the hard work worthwhile.
What skills/qualities are most important in your role as a group travel organiser?
It’s about focusing on what the current trends are and realising there must be a variety of choice for all types of members, particularly with different budgets in mind. To be able to provide different types of experiences from a London trip to climbing a mountain, learning to cook or just chilling on a beach.
I’d say my main quality is enthusiasm and drive. I have been in the role for over 30 years, I absolutely love my job, and I cannot wait to get in to work to face the next set of challenges that have kept me motivated and focused on providing a great service to our membership.
